The Parish Church of Saint Andrew, Thringstone is a small cruciform structure built in 1862 from the designs of James Piers StAubyn of London, the eminent Victorian church architect and restorer.
The plan is unusual, having a broad nave with shallow transepts, a round-ended sanctuary and a round-ended vestry on its north side.
The church was consecrated on Tuesday November 25 1862 and opened as a chapel of ease to Whitwick, there having been a great increase in population during the first part of the nineteenth century owing to the rapid expansion of the local coal mining industry.
Building work was carried out by William Beckworth of Whitwick and Mr Elliott of Ashby-de-la-Zouch/Burton at a cost of £750 12s.
Funding came from grants and public subscription, zealously elicited by the Revd Francis Merewether, Vicar of Whitwick. Mr Merewether, a theologian of decidedly ‘low church’ views, preached and wrote prolifically against Ambrose de Lisle’s Roman Catholic mission, and was incensed by such developments as the founding of a Cistercian monastery within his parish and the opening of a Catholic day school at Turry Log, within the township of Thringstone, in 1843. It could be argued that the church at Thringstone owes the fact of its existence just as much to Mr Merewethers’ desire to counteract the papist revival as to any demographic changes.
Mr Merewether was the chief benefactor of Thringstone Church, along with Sir GH Beaumont, ninth Baronet of Coleorton Hall, each of whom donated £100.
Thringstone became an independent ecclesiastical parish on October 29 1875, since which time there have been seven incumbents.
The church is one of forty-two in the Patronage of Her Majesty the Queen (in Right of her Duchy of Lancaster).
In the year 2002, the building was given Grade Two Listed status, together with the tomb of Charles Booth, the great social reformer, which can be found on the north side of the church yard.
To find the cache you will need to research the date of birth of the English philanthropist who is buried in the churchyard (this information is available online).
Take DD/M/YYYY to give AB/C/DEFG, and use these numbers to determine the final location:
N52 4(D+F).D(A+C)(D+E), W001 2(C-D).(F-A)(A-D)(D+E)
Joint first to find honours go to batesandlaw and PlasmaWave.
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For full information on how you can expand the Church Micro series by sadexploration please read the Place your own Church Micro page before you contact him at churchmicro@gmail.com.
See also the Church Micro Statistics and Home pages for further information about the series.
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